Events

What role for organic in future policy?

17 October 2018

Delivering our aspirations for future food, farming and environmental policy:
what role for organic food and farming?

Bargehouse Gallery, OXO Tower Wharf, Southbank , London SE1 9PH

The English Organic Forum, the alliance of all organic organisations working in England, is hosting an afternoon of debate and discussion on the potential of organic food and farming in future policy on Wednesday 17th October 2017 at the London’s Southbank Bargehouse Gallery, 2:00-5:00 pm.

We would like to invite you to join the conversation on the new Vision for Organic and the draft England Organic Action Plan, which sets out the case for supporting organic farming and the valuable role it can play in delivering health, nature conservation, climate change, economic sustainability and natural resource benefits.

The ongoing debate around Brexit has led to a wide-ranging discussion on how food and farming can contribute to broader societal goals. With the Health and Harmony consultation and the recent publication of the Government’s Agricultural Bill, with its emphasis on public money for public goods, the English Organic Forum wishes to open up a debate on how the organic sector fits within the wider aspirations and how this may be realised.

How could organic food be more widely available? How do we tell the story and engage people better with how their food is produced and supplied? What are the economic and social possibilities from localised food systems? In what ways can the organic approach to land management be supported to provide public goods beyond food production?

This is a key time for food and farming, and we want to scope out what opportunities there are for engaging with other parties or initiatives to collaborate, creating new creative alliances to bring about a lasting change in the way food and farming are delivered in this country.

Our afternoon session is one of a series of policy related events – including days organised by Sustain (15th Oct) and the Landworkers’ Alliance (16th Oct), staged with support from the Gaia Foundation as part of their We Feed the World exhibition taking place from 12th to 21st October (10am-6pm daily) this year. This is a photographic exhibition which documents the lives of nearly 50 farming communities across six continents, it seeks to communicate the vital role of small-scale agroecology. It will be accompanied by a ten-day programme of talks, films and workshops by international activists in the food and farming movement, artists and leading campaign groups.

Our workshop will take place within a public exhibition by the Organic Research Centre showcasing the benefits of organic farming and the critical role that scientific research has for the sector. There will be an opportunity for the public to share their views and feedback how they feel organic farming can be improved